Aberdeen chief believes Scottish football is surviving Armageddon

Stewart Milne believes that Scottish football is emerging into an exciting new era.

Despite the fears of social unrest from Stewart Regan and of Armageddon by Neil Doncaster there are plenty of signs of life across the country with all of the top flight clubs competing on a level playing field.

Plans by the SFA to publish the accounts of member clubs may have been overlooked but on the park, as well as off it, Scottish football is alive with clubs living within their means with supporters of Aberdeen, St Mirren and Kilmarnock celebrating their first trophy wins of the century.

Supporters are gradually coming back to a game played in some degree of fairness although a shadow hangs over how Rangers (IL) were able to operate without penalty with dual contracts while lower division and non-league clubs are expelled from competitions for honest mistakes with the registration of players.

Reflecting on Aberdeen’s League Cup triumph Milne said: “There are a lot of encouraging signs in Scottish football. We have been through a period where we dragged the game down but it’s time to speak up for Scottish football again because we’re back on the rails again.

“Look at the likes of Dundee United, they have some fantastic young players coming through as we do here at Aberdeen. Most clubs are getting into a stronger position. We have to do our bit at Aberdeen but hopefully next season we can get three or four clubs a bit stronger and challenging.

“Life is about cycles, you have ups and downs. Scottish football has been on a downward trend for the past five to eight years but we hit the bottom last year and are on the way back up now.

“We’ve put through league reconstruction and the good work from a few years ago in youth development is starting to come through. We are getting the benefits of that and I feel very positive about the future for the whole game. In the next 10 years we’ll get back on to a much better footing.”

Once the ‘leadership’ that went into meltdown in the summer of 2012 is removed Scottish football will have the opportunity to move forward, while Doncaster, Regan and Campbell Ogilvie are in charge the handbrake will always to be on any recovery.